Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1887-05-06

after we had gone. We did
not reach our boats too soon, for
We could hear muttering voices and
tramping feet close behind us. With
muttied oars we pulled for our friend
brig. We had proceeded not more
than % yards from the shore, when
we heard our pursuers jumping into
boats at the landing. Who they were
we could not tell, but they had not the
customary lights with them to indicate
that they were honest citizens. The ex-
treme darkness favored our flight
among the many vessels anchored
in the harbor, most of which had their
anchor lights up. My friends vessel
had two lights in the main rigging as
q private signal. These were put out
as soon as we reached the deck. a..
Entering the cabin, we again saw
the face OF the lady. AS have before
said, she was the most beautiful wom-
an | had ever seen. could not help
feeling that my friend was not the
handsome fellow that deserved to be
united to such lovliness-yet the gods
mated Venus and Vulcan. The
Swedish captain was speeches. with
| admiration. l acted as his ambas-
sador and informed her how des-
perately in love he was, and that he
was determined to save her or lose his
life in the attempt. She was now free
to act for herself, but l was sure that
II she married him she would have a.
loving husband. AS I had been con-
cerned in her rescue from captivity
felt it my right as we'll as my duty to
urge her to accept him. She did not
utter a. word, but remained perfectly
passive. / advised him to leave the
cabin and get his ship under way at
once. My boats crew would assist
him. The vessel must be outside the
harbor, I said, before daylight, and
before sunrise.be we'll into the sea of
Marmora. And so we parted.
It was 8 o'clock when I reached
my ship. Sleep was out OF the
question. The events of the pre-
vious few days were like a dream
out of which I had just awakened.
The consequences might have been
serious to me. But I was always
ready for adventures, and had been
in many a predicament equally haz-
ardous. lived, as all young sailors
! live, on romance and daring. The
excitement Of this occasion was as ex-
hilarating to me as champagne Is to
the winebibber.
In the morning I was visited by sew
eral of the captains who had been my
guests Of the night before. They had
felt some fear for our safety when
they learned that a conflict had taken
place between the guard in tie street
| we passed through and q band of Greek
robbers. Two of the robbers had
been kille<:. These must have been
our pursuers, who after we had eluded
them, had returned and attacked the
! guard. They were overpowered by a.
| company of soldiers from the fort,
who were making their rounds to re-
lieve the guard. OF course i knew
nothing of what had become of the
Swedish captain. I assured them
that he went safely on board and was
to have sailed at sunrise, and that, as
the wind was fresh and fair, I suppos.
ed he was off. l feigned an attack OF
rheumatism as an excuse for not going
ashore that day. The following day
our consul, hearing l was sick, came
! on board. From him | learned that
on of the wives of the pacha of the
army had made her escape by
the aid, it was supposed, OF
the Greek robbers, some of whom had
been captured and would be executed
unless they told where their compan-
ions and the captive were to be
found. 1t was supposed that she was
held for a ransom. A rigid search was
made ON board all the Greek vessels,
OF which there were many lying in the
harbor, but OF course the missing lady
was not found.
Our consul, I think, had his suspi-
cions as to the manner of the lady's
escape from the palace. He asked me
to dine with him, saying that l, being
a person so we'll known in Pera, would
be missed if / did not go ashore
and show myself at my usual resorts.
took his advice and dined with
him, remaining all night at the
consulate, where he insisted
upon my making my home for the
rest of my stay. He was too much
OF a gentleman to question me, what
ever he may have thought, and 1
deemed it advisable, because of his
official position, to keep him in ig-
norance of my part in the affair.
Though not pertinent to this voy-
age. ! will here give the sequel of this
adventure. Nine years later, while in
command Of the chipper-ship Dread
nought, arriving in New York one day,
l made fast at my usual berth at the
foot of Rector street, when Capt.
Hope, Sandy Hook pilot, who was
harbor.master at the time, boarded
my vessel and told me that Swedish
brig was lying at pier 8, and that
her captain was very anxious to
meet me before he sailed. The
Constantinople episode had near.
ly passed from my mind in the excit-
ing years that had interviewed. AS
soon as our gang-plank was hauled
ashore, a lady and gentleman came
on board. l was standing on the
| quarter deck with some custom-house
officers and passengers. The lady,
| whom l immediateIysrecogni5ed, came
forward and embraced me with much
| warmth. and the gentleman followed
suit. The pleasure attending this hap
py meeting was shared by all who wit.
messed it. It is needless to say that
the pair were the Swedish captain
and the lady whom I assisted
to escape from Constantinople.
That truth is indeed stranger than
fiction is here exemplifed. Alter
leaving Constantinople their Joy was
unspeakable in discovering that they
had been lovers in their childhood.
She was the haxen-haired girl for whom
| my friend had pinned SO long. When
they parted as children her family
went to Moscow, where they remained
| several years, and where she had the
I Il 01,,4